Monday, June 3, 2013

Jared Hughes & Ryan Reid Called Up; Other Moves Brewing

The bullpen has been stretched pretty tight this year, starting with Jonathan Sanchez and now just about reaching the snapping point yesterday when the third 11-inning game in a week required 10 frames from the relief corps.

So RHPs Jared Hughes, 26, who was sent down to Indy earlier in the year in search of his sinker, and Ryan Reid, 28, a minor-league vet who has been lights-out for the Tribe, are on the way.

Hughes pitched 13 games for the Pirates this year, going 1-2/4.61. In three years, he's appeared in 91 games, with a line of 3-5-2 with a 3.23 ERA. In 11 outings for Indy, he's 1-0-2 with 0.69 ERA. Hughes is a middle guy who depends on his sinker, which has led to a 59.8% ground ball rate in the MLB. He doesn't have true swing-and-miss stuff, so he's unlikely to ever become a back-end arm.

Reid is in his third AAA season, going 13-5-2 with a 3.24 ERA between the Tampa Bay & Pittsburgh systems. But he's been brilliant for the Tribe, going 6-1, 0.52 in 34-2/3 IP with 31 K. He's a sinker/slider pitcher, a pretty common combo in the Pittsburgh Shark Tank. Reid isn't on the 40-man roster, so his call requires not just an active roster move but a space on the as-of-now full 40 man roster. In the last two years, Reid has averaged a K per inning, and he does come from a talent rich organization, so he'll be one to watch.

There are several scenarios as to how the other domino pieces would fall. Mike Zagurski, John McDonald, or Jose Contraras could be DFA'ed to clear that 40-man spot. Jeanmar Gomez, who had a generally defined "forearm tightness" issue yesterday, could be anything from day-to-day to possible 60 day DL fodder (although 15 day DL seems the safest bet).

If Gomez misses a start, as seems likely, Charlie Morton is shadowing his rotation day at Indy. He hasn't been all that hot in rehab, but should be called up to fill Gomez's next start, which could be pushed back or maybe skipped as Thursday is an off day for the Bucs. So stay tuned, we'll update you on the Bucs latest shake-and-bakin' .

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